Box



Oct. 12 1926. 1,602,507

I A. SCHNEIDER Box Filed March 13 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet;

. 16 'Hll uh. 256 llu 1 l 1 a2 INVENTOR All/bony Johnna!" 1' ATTORNEYS Oct. 12,1926. 1,602,507

A. SCHNEIDER BOX Filed March 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 12, 1926.

UNITED STATES 1,602,507 PATENT OFFICE.

ANTHONY SCHNEIDER, OF WHIPPANY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB T AMERICAN CIGAR COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

BOX.

Application filed March 13, 1924. Serial No. 699,046.

My invention relates to boxes, usually made of sheet metal, and especially suitable for packing cigars, although not necessarily limited to such uses.

An important object of the invention it to provide a simple, inexpensive and secure fastener for the movable boxlid.

A furthe object is to so construct or arrange the fastener in relation to the box parts that it is very quickly andeasily removable and replaceable.

Another object is to so arrange or adapt the fastener and box that it can be used when removed from its active location as a fastener, to support the movable box lid in an elevated or open position.

A further object is to provide readily yieldable or releasable fastening means additional to the main fastening device above referred to, and which may be employed in connection with it or separately.

The characteristics and advantagesof the invention are further sufficiently explained in connection with the following detail description of the accompanying drawings, which show one exemplifying embodiment of the invention. After considering this embodiment, skilled persons will understand that many variations may be made within the principles of the invention, and I contemplate the employment'of any structures that are properly within the scope of the appended claims.

Fig. 1.

I Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a box and fastener structure embodying the invention in one form. Fig. 2 is a partial transverse section in plane 22, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the box lid open and supported by' the detach-- able fastener device. r I Fig. 4 is a horizontal section at 14,

Fig. 5 is a vertical section at 5'-5, Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a detail view ofthe detachable fastener. Fig. 7 shows the fastener used as a cover lifter. While the general form or shape of th box may varyconsiderably in many cases, it is designed in the present example as a sheet metal cigar box, suitable for packing cigars of standard'sizes and in ordinary quantities for retail vending. For that pur ose the main or hotly portion 101s of an stantia Desirably, also, the inward istering holesBQ and the end of hoo depthand rectangular outline, including front and rear walls 11 and 12, and end walls 13 and 14, the vertical edges or corners 15 connecting the walls being preferably smoothly curved or rounded. Desirably, the

upper edges of the vertical walls are finished their u per edges in a bead 21, which when the lid 1s closed fits down closely on the body head 16.

. The-lid is hingedly connected along one side of the body in any convenient way, preferably by means of short sleeves or eyes 25 secured to the rear lid wall 19 below the bead, and formed around the hinge wire 26, which may extend throughout the body bead 16, this beadbeing cut away at intervals to permit the hinge connections.

,To provide a simple, economical, secure and readily detachable fastening for the lid, holes 30 are provided in the upper portion of the body wall 11 just below the head 16, these holes being equally spaced at opposite. sides of the center point of the wall length, and registering holes 31 are formed inthe front lid wall 18. The fastener 32 may consist of a single piece of spring wire of? moderate but substantial thickness, the long or central portion of which is desirably slightly bowed, or bent at the center, as shown in Figs. .6 and 7, and the ends are bent in to form short hooks'33 and 33 adapted to enter the pairs of holes 30 and 31, as shown in Fig. 4', and to hold the lid securely shut ina way which will be obvious without further explanation. Desirably one of the hooks 33 is short'and is bent at approximately a right angle to the main portion, or preferably, is bent slightly inward from the right-angle position; and the other hook 33 is larger and is preferably some what curved or at least its end portion is' directed inwardly at a considerable angle to the main part ofshank of the fastener. surface of hooked portion 33 is roughened or moderately serrated to increase the security of its engagement with different box parts, as further explained below.

To-lock the box, when the cover is closed, hook 33 is first inserted in two of the reglit) 33 is then brought close to the other hole 30 and by slight elongation of the fastener accompanied by straightening out the body portion, or by straightening the slight central bend therein, the hook is readily snapped into position, as shown in Fig. at; that is, it passes through the other two registering holes 30 and 31. The fastener thereupon tends to resume its normal shape or becomes again very slightly bent or bowed, as sufficiently shown in Fig. 4t, and this resilient pull exerted by the main fastener portion holds the serrations of hook 33 firmly in engagement with the hole edges, so that this hook is secure against accidental displacement; and hook 33 with its greater length and curvature, is securely retained in position in an obvious way. The box cover is thus positively locked in closed position.

To open the box, it isonly necessary to remove hook from its holes, and the large hook 333 can then be easily removed. To facilitate the removal of hook 33, a suitable device, such as a tab or ribbon 33 is de sirably provided in some cases, this being secured to or about the fastener shank and located adjacent hook 33. To remove the hook it is only necessary to grasp and pull the tab or ribbon outward To aid in lifting the cover, a central finger piece 4C0 is desirably provided at the top of the front cover wall, this finger piece being conveniently formed by bending in the head 21.

In some boxes of this class, which are frequently placed in showcases of tobacco stores to display the cigars, it is very desirable to have some means for supporting the cover in open position without permitting it to fall entirely back; In the present invention the fastener 32 is used also as a cover support. Forthis purpose a hole 4:5

is formed in one of the body end walls such as 14-, close under the bead, and another hole is formed in the corresponding cover wall 20. These holes may register when the cover is shut, although this is not essential. The large hook 33 is first inserted in cover hole 46, and the small hook 33 is then inserted in hole in the body end wall. The tendency of the cover to fall back then securely retains the small hook in its hole, and accidental displacement is fnrtherprevented by the serrations formed in the inner hook face, which engage the edge of .the hole. The exact position of the cover when supported in open position may be varied by suitable placing of either or both of the holes, or by varying the length of the fastener 32.

The fastener is also ver conveniently available as an opener or cover lifter. For this purpose, after it has been removed from locking position it is positioned in the manner indicated in Fig. 7, with one of the hooks, such as 33 inserted under the inbent finger piece or flange 40. The shank affords an ample hand grip so that by an upward pull on the fastener 32, the box cover may be easily raised.

Additional yieldable fastening means for the cover may be provided, consisting of indentations formed in the body and walls close under bead 16 and preferably close to the rounded vertical corners 15, and corresponding indentations 51 formed in the cover end *alls. \Vhen the cover is closed, indentations 5O snap into engagement with indentations 51 and afforda secure but yieldable fastening, which may be used by itself or in addition to the fastening device con sisting of the wire 32 and the holes 30 and 31. The release of the fastening device consisting of the indentations 50 and 51, is greatly facilitated by reason of the fact that when the fingers or fastener is inserted beneath the lifting flange 10 and an upward pull is given at this central part of the cover, the front cover wall, due to the natural flexibility of the metal, assumes a slightly upwardly curved or bowed shape,

or in other words, the distance between the cover indentations 51 is perceptibly reduced, so that the concave cover indentations 51 are freed. from engagement with the inwardly projecting body indentations 50,

and a quick and easy release of the 00-0 rerating fastening elements is afforded. As soon as lifting pressure is removed, the front cover wall returns to normal straight form, and when it is pushed shut, the co-operating indentations snap into contact and securely but releasably retain the cover in closed position. lVhile the location of the registering indentations 50 and 51 may be varied in some cases, their location on end walls of the box body and cover respectively are advantageous and usually preferred, because the end walls are approximately rigid and are definitely and accurately located in the manufacture of the box and definite points are thus provided for the releasable interlocking engagement of the cover and body indentations.

I claim:

1. A box and fastener structure comprising a body portion, a cover having a wall located alongside a body wall when the cover is in closedposition, said walls being provided withspaced pairs of registering apertures, and a fastener consisting of an exteriorlywapplied rod having hooked ends inserted through and removably held within registering apertures,said rod'being of re silient material and incurved form, the distance between'the ends of the hooks thereon being normally slightly less than the distance between the pairs of apertures through which they pass.

2. A box or fastener structure comprising a body portion, a cover portion hinged to said body portion and having a Wall located alongside a body wall when the cover is in closed position, said Walls being supplied with spaced pairs of registering apertures, and a fastener consisting of an exteriorlyapplied rod having hooked ends inserted through and removably retained within registering apertures, corresponding end walls of the body and cover also being provided with apertures located to be detachably engaged by the fastener hooks to retain the cover in an open position.

3. A box and fastener structure comprising a body portion, a cover portion having a wall located alongside a body Wall when the cover is in closed position, said walls being provided with spaced pairs of registering apertures, and a fastener consisting of an exteriorly-applied rod having hooked ends inserted through and removably held within registering apertures, said rod being of resilient material and in curved form, the distance between the ends of the hooks thereon being normally slightly less than the distance between the pairs of apertures through which they pass, corresponding end walls of the body and cover also being pro vided with apertures located to be detachably engaged by the fastener hooks to retain the cover in an open position.

4:. A sheet metal. box and fastener structure comprising a box body, a cover hingedly connected to one of the body walls and having shallow walls adapted to telescope within the upper portions of the body walls, a fastener consisting of a piece of spring wire having hooked ends and having a bowed portion between the hooks, the front body and cover walls having registering spaced pairs of holes arranged to receive the fastener hooks, the fastener and the apertures being so proportioned and ar ranged that the fastener is releasably retained by engagement of the hooks in the aperture and positively prevents opening of the cover while it is in position.

5. A box and fastener structure comprising a sheet metal box body having a bead at the upper edges of the walls, a cover hingedly connected to one of the body walls and having shallow walls adapted to telescope within the upper portions of the body walls, the upper edges of the cover wall being provided with a bead fitting against the body bead whenthe cover is closed, a fastener consisting of a piece of spring wire having hooked ends and having a curved portion between the hooks, the front body and cover walls having registering spaced holes located close below the body bead and arranged to receive the fastener hooks, the fastener and the apertures being so proportioned and arranged that the fastener is releasably retained by engagement of the hooks with the body and cover walls at the apertures and positively prevents opening of the cover when it is in position.

Signed at New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 28 day of Feby. A. D. 1924:.

ANTHONY SCHNEIDER.- 

